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My mother stood in line for an hour and a half at the local Apple Store Friday afternoon so she could be one of the first to get an iPod mini. She got home and called me to help her understand how it worked. I decided to bring my iTrip for my 30GB 3G iPod to see if it would work… and it does! I’ve posted some pictures to show how the iTrip sits on top of the iPod mini for readers to see.

Just follow the directions that come with the iTrip to install the radio frequencies; etc and it will work exactly the same as it does on the 3G iPods.

iLounger Thomas Rai has informed us that Apple Specialist MacConnection.com is now shipping iPod minis to the United Kingdom or other non U.S. addresses. We’ve called MacConncetion and spoke with a representative and they confirm that they will ship the iPod mini to any UK or other address. Apple is scheduled to release the iPod mini to worldwide markets in April, but for those who don’t want to wait can order through MacConnection. Contact MacConnection for shipping costs.

Editor’s note: According to reader’s comments, MacConnection stopped shipping iPod minis to international addresses at the request of Apple.

XO Play today launched their first long awaited game for the iPod. ‘The Rise Of The Lost’ is an adventure story game. It puts you in the role of Sir Jacob Zaviour. Your mission is to travel through lands and fight the evil Wizard Sazque. As you read through the adventure you will be asked to choose your destiny by selecting from a number of options found at the bottom of the page. Similar to the ‘choose-your-own-adventure’ series. The game costs $29.99 is played via the notes section of your iPod.

iLounge senior editor, Jeremy Horwitz is standing in line (about 45 people so far at 5:55 pm PT) at the Apple Store Costa Mesa in California waiting to purchase a Blue iPod mini. Apple will release the minis for purchase at 6 pm, nationwide. Jeremy reports that there are a large quantity of silver iPod minis on hand while there are far less gold colored minis. One reader in Chicago is reporting that he “called the Chicago Apple Store, who said they had the minis in stock but could not actually sell them until 6pm CST. They did, however, say I could reserve one. They took down my name and color preference and said they’d have it waiting for me at 6pm.” Did you purchase your iPod mini from an Apple Store tonight?

Update: Our senior editor has reported that sales of iPod minis at the Apple Store Costa Mesa were brisk as was sales for the dock followed by the arm band. We got our Blue iPod mini, so expect a full review by Monday with lots of photos. An Apple Store rep informed iLounge of how many of each colored unit was on hand for the release. Approxiamately 75-125 of Silver, 20 each of Blue and Pink, and 4 units each of Gold and Green. All figures are estimates. They expect to sell out of iPod minis tonight.

“A New Jersey woman, one of the hundreds of people accused of copyright infringement by the Recording Industry Association of America, has countersued the big record labels, charging them with extortion and violations of the federal antiracketeering act.”

“The five largest music companies and three of the USA’s largest music retailers agreed Monday to pay $67.4 million and distribute $75.7 million in CDs to public and non-profit groups to settle a lawsuit led by New York and Florida over alleged price-fixing in the late 1990s.

Attorneys general in the two states, who were joined in the lawsuit by 39 other states, said that the industry kept consumer CD prices artificially high between 1995 and 2000 with a practice known as “minimum-advertised pricing” (MAP).

The settlement will go to all 50 states, based on population. Consumers may be able to seek compensation.”

“The big resurgence in capital spending lifted tech companies sharply, as corporations began investing again in information technology. Earnings for the computer industry soared 210%. Apple Computer Inc. (AAPL ) recorded the largest increase for the group, a 552% jump in annual profits to $137 million, thanks to strong sales of its computers and the iPod. IBM’s (IBM ) yearly profit increased 43%, to $7.6 billion, on the strength of consulting services and software sales. And hardware sales accelerated sharply in the fourth quarter. IBM Chief Financial Officer John. R. Joyce recently told investors that ‘2004 is the year when the IT industry will begin its next growth cycle.’”

“Chip manufacture Portal Player in San Diego US build the embedded PB5502B-C chip in Apple’s iPod. This is the chip that allows the playing of AAC and MP3 - However what is interesting is that the chip firmware by default also allows the playing of WMA. It looks like for some reason this is locked by Apple.”

Reader Daniel W. F. notes that his local Best Buy store has already begun selling the iPod mini. “Just wanted to let you know that the Best Buy in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania already has the iPod mini on sale (I paid $249)... for those without an Apple Store within driving distance.” We’ve called a couple local Best Buy stores in Southern California and all have confirmed that they didn’t sell any iPod minis through its retail locations, but sold out of the iPod mini through its online store. Check with your local store for availability.

“Music, software, video-game and DVD packages shortly will carry the famous FBI stamp and warnings about piracy, in a move to hammer home the message that stealing copyright materials is a serious crime, industry officials said Thursday.

The new antipiracy seal, which was announced at a press conference at the FBI’s Los Angeles office, will look much like the warnings already seen at the beginning of movies on DVDs or video tapes. Individual companies will decide where to place the seal and if they want to use it at all. The seal might be printed on a CD itself, on the packaging, or might pop up on screens when a customer downloads and purchases a digital music file.”

Today, Speck Products announces it’s shipping the newly designed rubberized skin for the iPod mini. The SkinTight Mini Skins features a removable lanyard and a super-slim profile that emphasizes the mini’s core values; small & fashionable. They come in 5 translucent colors (Pink, Clear, Gold, Lime, Blue) and are sold individually for $19.95 and as a 3-Pack (Clear, Lime, Blue) for $29.95.

“It was a breakthrough deal that would have put the Napster kitty on millions of Hewlett-Packard computers.

But in the days leading up to Napster’s re-launch in late October, HP suddenly—and without explanation—returned Napster’s $250,000 check and canceled the agreement to install a link to Napster’s online music service on its computers. Worse, in January HP announced a surprise partnership with Napster rival Apple Computer to feature the iTunes Music store on HP computers and sell Hewlett-Packard branded iPod music players.”

“A MacFixIt reader recently sent us a very thorough report on an issue that has occurred across several different iPods and a number of long conversations with AppleCare support representatives. The overall conclusion is that leaving an iPod in its dock (or, presumably, connected directly to a Mac via the dock/FireWire cable) while the Mac is asleep can drain the iPod’s battery. Below are a few key excerpts from this reader report:”

A Seattle production company is filming iPod owners as they talk about the product and their appreciation of music. We are looking for people to do an interview, or ‘testimonial’, as to their love for music, and how much they enjoy owning an iPod

The iTunes Music Store now features a “Tell a Friend” link for sharing with others. Simply click the link, fill out the form and tell a friend about your new discovery. “‘Tell a Friend’ links let you send email (that includes an album cover and a link back to the iTunes Music Store) to all your friends. You can even include a personal message. Try it today.”